anyways, you can call it whatever you want to for playing my record. but, if you just want to know what my actual name is, it is kesha, with a dollar sign. >> she has a dollar sign on her thumb there, i am old, i guess i know it. and i am also sorry, kesha, with a dollar sign, i did it multiple times. if you want to find me from the senior section, i will wondering if the pants will be fashionable next year. "first look" is up next. right now on "first look," a massive winter storm continues moving eastward with 93 million americans getting ready to hit the road. vice president joe biden gets down to business over president's gun control initiative. this morning's benghazi

hearings, hillary clinton is grounded by her doctors did. the fiscal cliff vote. and buzz lightyear likes space suits. starting with a full-blown winter storm that could dump as much as a foot of snow in some areas. eight states have already issued blizzard warnings, almost ens e ensuring a white christmas for many parts of the country as the storm continues moving east. if that's not enough, more storms are forecast for next week. we'll have bill karins full forecast coming up. as time runs out for lawmakers hammering out a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff, house republicans are sweetening a backup plan to gain more gop support. the president is vowing a veto even as hangups and negotiations threaten to keep him in town or delay his hawaiian vacation yet again this year. the irs estimates as many as 100 million tax returns could be delayed if no deal is struck by january 1st. nbc's tracie potts joins us

now from washington to break it all down. good morning. what's happening in today's vote? >> reporter: a couple of votes today. let's break it down for you, mara. the big vote that the republicans are pushing to have everyone under a million dollars keep their tax rates low. president obama says this defies lodger, that people making $800,000, $900,000 should be paying higher taxes. republicans think they can get it through the house. no luck of getting it through the democratic senate at all. second vote which is to sweeten the deal for the republicans who are skeptical is to replace the automatic cuts, a lot of which would hit the defense department with cuts in other programs like the health law and food stamps. >> and tracie, who's coming out in favor of this plan "b"? >> well, among those in favor of it, off qusly john boehner, the house speaker and also paul ryan, the chair of the budget committee and former vice presidential candidate. there have been a lot of questions about whether or not he would come out behind this plan.

but he's said that it seems to meet all of the goals that republicans have. there's been white a split within the republican party about just how much of a tax increase, if any, should be accepted. ry ryan's behind it. >> tracie potts in washington. helping us keep it all straight. thanks so much. congressman stiff israel stopped by "the ed show" to offer harsh words of advice to republicans about plan "b" and beyond. let's take a listen. >> democrats have shown an ability to compromise. democrats have shown an ability to try and meet republicans. and when we are met with a stunt like this, that doesn't solve the problem, but simply continues these cliff hangers every several weeks we ought to say no to the republicans. so this is a nonstarter. the "b" in plan "b" is just bizarre. this raises taxes for the middle class. it is true that it raises taxes on people over a million dollars but you lose the earned income tax credit. you lose the child care tax credit, lose tuition tax credits. it is another shot at the middle class in order to protect the

richest. catch "the ed show" weeknights at 8:00 eastern on msnbc. four state department officials are out following a scathing report on the consulate attack in benghazi. a u.s. ambassador and three others were killed in a terrorist attack on that diplomatic compound in libya. one state department official resigned wednesday and three others removed after an independent panel found security at the consulate was insufficient and state department leadership was to blame. >> the security posture at the special mission compound was inadequate for the threat environment in benghazi. and in fact, grossly inadequate to deal with the attack that took place that night. >> the report also found the attack was not the result of protests over an anti-islamic video as was first reported. later today, two deputy secretaries of state will testify before congress about the attack. secretary of state hillary clinton will not be there. she's recovering from a

concussion after fainting from the stomach flu. aides say clinton, the most traveled u.s. diplomat ever won't be making any trips at all for a few weeks. state department officials dismiss claims that clinton is faking her illness to avoid testifying. vice president joe biden is getting right to business with his first meet as he sach searches for ways to tighten gun laws and curb violence in the wake of the sandy hook massacre. president obama set a january deadline for recommendations from biden's task force and he'll make this a major part of his state of the union address as he lays out a list of priorities for the country. seemingly endsless line of funeral processions will roll through newtown, connecticut. among yesterday's good-byes, family and friends gathered in honor of 27-year-old victoria soto, the teacher killed while trying to shield her young first grade students from a barrage of bullets. paul simon was there to sing soto's favorite song "the sound of silence."

meanwhile, the family of 6-year-old victim noah pozner said someone they didn't know was soliciting donations in noah's memory. the official-looking website has since been transferred to the family. new details are emerging about the whereabouts of nancy lanza in the days leading up to the massacre. nbc news learned nancy was on vacation in new hampshire wednesday and thursday of last week, according to a family friend. the friend didn't know where she was staying and couldn't confirm whether she had left adam home alone. now here's your "first look" at this morning's dish of scrambled politics. director steven spielberg attended a screening of his film "lincoln" for a bipartisan group of senators in hopes of bringing them together in talks on the fiscal cliff. spielberg, a major obama supporter surprised some when he said that new jersey governor chris christie was a hero to him because he told the truth right before the election about president obama's help with hurricane sandy relief.

and speaking of christie, the governor gave an interview discussing the 2012 and 2016 elections saying "i wasn't ready to run for president this time." if it cops i know i will be more ready for it than i would have been this year. charlie crist blasted the state's election law that was supposed to prevent voter fraud. he trashed governor rick scott for the law that might have suppressed the vote in florida, saying it turned the state into what he called a, quote, late-night tv joke. actor ben affleck testified to congress about security in congo and he stuck to his mission, politely declining to comment on possibly being named to the senate if john kerry becomes secretary of state. affleck said, quote, that's not what i'm here to talk about. a white house photo just released shows the president playing with the son of a staffer outside the oval office in october. he escaped quickly enough to win re-election less than two weeks later. that's your morning dish of

scrambled politics. and now for a look at the national weather forecast, we turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. good morning, bill. sounds like it will be pretty bad. >> not as cute or funny as that photo of the president. it's an ugly morning. it's a classic plains blizzard we're dealing with, the gusty winds, the thunderstorms to the south of it, airport cancellations, highways closed. it continues now. sometimes when you get these very impressive storms that are this strong we get what we call thundersnow. maybe you've seen it yourself occasionally. you actually can see the clap and see in the distance, even though it's snowing hard, you get the thunder. it's almost like a blueish color when it's mixed with the color of the snow and it's usually at night time. usually you can get rates of 3 to 4 inches an hour when you're in these bands of thundersnow. iowa and southern wisconsin are pretty much shut down. it's not recommended you travel anywhere in those areas.

the blizzard is hard-hitting right now. it's getting better in kansas and nebraska. the winds are still howling, however. even though it's not snowing as hard, it's still blowing all over the place. as we go through the winter season, the green is the rain, the white is where it's snowing. right over the top of omaha to des moines and ames, now it's snowing hard in areas of wisconsin, already 5 to 6 inches of snow on the ground there in madison. the winds on the backside, the snow that did fall is blowing all over the place. winds gusting to 50 in omaha, 47 in wichita and kansas city, the winds are picking up for you, too, as you're starting to get bands of snow on backside. who's going to get additional snow out of this? we're mostly talking another 6 to 10 inches possible from the dubuque area, madison and green bay. milwaukee and chicago, a little too warm. on the backside of this late today you'll get a quick burst of snow yourselves. you may pick up an inch or two. when that happens, the temperatures plummet and we'll

get freezing around the road. on the south side of the thunderstorm this morning, a tornado warning north of jackson, mississippi. we're watching the deep south, mostly mississippi, alabama for severe thunderstorms and eventually those storms work their way towards atlanta. for the east coast, much of this morning's drive is just fine. tomorrow morning, it will not be a pretty scene, even areas such as philly, d.c. and new york. the fbi is offering a $50,000 reward for these escaped chicago bank robbers. jose banks, that's his name and kenneth conley, the pair they climbed down a 20-story jail and then surveillance video shows them hopping into a cab. plus, which car performed best in the 2013 insurance institute's highway safety test? the results coming up next. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. [ male announcer ] when it comes to the financial obstacles

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some stories making news this morning, oregon man

dropped his loaded handgun in a movie theater while watching "the hobbit" and claim ee eed -e back to claim it last night. 2013 models, tested for crashes where the front corner of the vehicle hits another vehicle, structure or pole. the honda accord, dodge avenger, ford fusion, vokz wasing passat and the nissan ultima did better then luxury counterparts, enough to earn the institute's newest rating of top safety pick plus. south korea elected its first woman president. many of the patrons are from virginia tech, the scene of the deadly campus shooting in 2007. a new international gallup poll founded if the happiest

people in the world are in sunny climates like panama and paragu paraguay. the u.s. was 33 on list of happy nations. the youtube video of what appears to be an eagle appearing to swoop down and grab a child is a hoax. it was created by four animation students at a school in montreal. they got us all. now for a check of your morning morning markets. the dow opens at 13,251 after falling 98 points yesterday. the s&p and the nasdaq each lost 10. overseas, the into ek can i dropped 121 points but the hang seng gained 3. it could be the end often era for the new york stock exchange. news of a deal that would end more than two centuries of independence for the nyse could come as early as today as its parent company hammers out a potential deal to sell itself to rival intercontinental exchange for about $8 billion. gm shares shot up 6%

yesterday on news that the u.s. government will sell its remaining stake in the automaker by 2016. demand has skyrocketed for one unique product, bulletproof backpacks. they're lined with a light material that can allegedly stop handgun rounds. google, the search giant just inked a deal to sell motorola home for $2.3 billion. you can bet it's going to be a long day for delivery workers at u.p.s. and the u.s. post office today, the busiest day the year for deliveries. u.p.s. expects to hand over 28 million packages for today alone. good news for folks still shopping, that would be me, retailers cut prices up to 70%. macy's will be open for 48 hours straight beginning 7:00 a.m. tomorrow through 7:00 a.m. sunday. there could be more cheer in offices around the country. a new survey found 72% of

executives plan toen had out holiday gifts this year. that's nice. finally if your holiday party is missing balloons, here's why. a global helium shortage turned the second most abundant element in the universe into a scarce commodity. disrupting balloons, floats and mri machines as well as scientific research. a tea party group is raffling off an assault rifle this week. details, coming up next. and victor cruz sits down with jimmy fallon to talk about the impact one of newtown's 26 angels has on him. [ male announcer ] this is bob,

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here's your "first look" at some of the other news going on around america. a brave customer leaped into action when an armed gunman held up a washington convenience store. the bystander attacked the would-be robber and slammed him to the ground. he and a store employee held down the suspect until the police arrived. in north carolina tea party group is drawing outrage for raffling two guns, including an ar-15 assault rifle similar to the one used in last week's connecticut school shooting. >> what made us decide to go through with it is because the left, once again, is trying to dominate the conversation. >> the group says the fund-raiser was scheduled before the sandy hook shootings. two deadly and massive wrecks, first to texas where a major dust storm along

interstate 27 caused five crashes and killed one person. 45 mile-an-hour wind gusts reduced visibility in some areas to zero. and next to new york, where one person was culled in a pileup involving 37 cars on a long island highway. officials believe the multivehicle collision began when a tractor-trailer served into several vehicles. finally, santa claus gets in sight seeing to spread holiday cheer among the sea life in key largo, florida. this wasn't a vacation for jolly saint nick. each year he makes the dive to raise funds for a local children's charity. in sports, more emotional reaction after the connecticut school shootings. victor cruz of the new york giants talked about his visit with the family of jack pinto who was a victor cruz fan. >> they were being positive, asking me football questions. i signed autographs for all the

kids that were there. it was a good time. winthrop university basketball coach kelsey talked about going home to his own children. he also talked about gun violen violence. >> i'm going to give them the biggest hug and kiss i've ever given them. there's 20 families in newport, connecticut that are walking into a pink room with a bunch of teddy bears with nobody laying in those beds. and it's tragic. now to some action in the nba. oklahoma city's kevin durant poured in 41 points. that's a season high for him. as the thunder dominated atlanta with a 100-92 win over the hawks. finally, minnesota quarterback christian ponder and espn reporter samantha steele were married wednesday at a private ceremony in wisconsin in the court. afterwards samantha steele sent a cheek saying twitter is so tricky. who knew she's preg nan and they'll be divorced soon are just the 2012 version of congrats. thanks, guys. well, now here's another

look at weather with nbc meteorologist bill karins with our weather channel forecast. >> want to help everyone now in the mid-atlantic and the northeast. this storm is heading your way next. this morning we're just fine but by this evening's ride home, 6:00 p.m., the rain could arrive in washington, d.c. thankfully it will only be rain. it could be extremely windy come friday morning at this time. 7:00 a.m. friday. the red here is extremely heavy rain. it looks like it will be exiting baltimore from philadelphia to new york city. tomorrow morning's rush hour could be messy with strong winds and heavy rain, maybe even thunderstorms. by noon, it passes up into new england and should be exiting boston by friday evening. friday afternoon at least, when the big rush goes for everyone heading to the holidays should be okay. tomorrow morning, big travel concerns in the east coast. >> good to keep in mind. thanks, bill. just ahead, a new miss universe you've got to see and bradley cooper gets very person personal. plus, buzz was light years

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here's what's going on you guys. there are new reports that president obama is considering the ceo of american express to be the next treasury secretary. it will be annoying when obama presents his choice to the senate and they're like, sorry, we don't take american express. after it was announced that the jets will start mcelroy, it's rumored that tim tebow might ask to be traded. that could be it for tebow here in new york. let's take a look back at tebow's highlights from this

season. all right. very good. >> the guy can't get a break. nasa unveiled a new space suit wednesday that may look familiar to millions of kids and movie fans. this is the z-1 prototype space suit. yes, it looks like buzz lightyear from toy story. it may not have retractible wings and all that other stuff, the green stripes and transparent dome give the suit an uncanny resemblance. the 2012 miss universe was crowned last night. out of 89 countries, the winner was miss usa, olivia culpo, miss rhode island. miss universe is owned by donald trump and nbc. 2011's sexiest man alive bradley cooper appeared on "ellen" and revealed why he doesn't like taking his shirt off. >> i actually have a third nipple. here's my regular nipple. i have a fourth nipple, actually. can you see that?

i have a fifth one, too. can you get in there? >> and finally, the trailer for leonardo dicaprio "the great gatsby" just hit and the '20s have never roared so loudly. >> gatsby. ♪ >> you have an extraordinary sense of hope but i had the uneasy feeling that he was guarding secrets. >> that looks awesome. this is "first look" on msnbc. stay tuned, "way too early" starts right now. when you think about what we've gone through over the last couple of months, a